By NICHOLAS GAINEY
Special to TopSports.news
A strong showing on the defensive end led to offensive opportunities as the Washburn Rural boys picked up a 74-45 win over Centennial League rival Manhattan on Tuesday night at Rural.
Junior John Hoytal led Washburn Rural with 18 points in Tuesday's 74-45 Centennial League win over Manhattan. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
The Junior Blues set the tone early, starting the game with an 8-0 run. Junior Simon Rowley earned the first points of the evening, snagging his first of a team-high seven rebounds and finishing with a putback layup. The run also saw a layup from junior John Hoytal before senior Kaden Ballard knocked down a mid-range jumper to give the hosts the 8-0 lead.
After a pair of free throws by the Indians, Washburn Rural answered with layups from Rowley and senior Amare Jones to stretch the lead to 12-2.
Sam Spiegel gave Manhattan its first field goal of the evening, but a floater from Hoytal forced an Indian timeout with 2:03 to play in the first quarter. The Junior Blues forced eight turnovers by Manhattan in the first period on their way to an 18-6 lead, with Hoytal scoring seven points in the opening frame.
The Indians found the first points of the second quarter with a layup from Vince Doering, but Hoytal answered with a 3-pointer.
While the Manhattan offense took better care of the ball in the second period, Washburn Rural kept its foot on the gas, jumping out to a 36-17 halftime lead.
Jones helped the hosts’ effort with six consecutive points late in the half.
After allowing an 8-0 run to start the game, Manhattan found an 8-0 run of its own to open the second half, cutting the Junior Blue lead to 36-25.
The hosts answered with a 3-pointer from junior Draden Chooncharoen and a layup from Ballard, but a jumper from Landon Knopp and a layup from Doering kept the Indians within striking distance.
Midway through the third quarter, a pair of big plays shifted the momentum in favor of the Junior Blues.
Ballard finished a difficult layup along with a foul, hitting the free throw to complete the 3-point play. Jones then knocked down a 3-pointer from the left wing to extend the lead to 47-31.
The visitors continued to battle into the fourth quarter, with Noah McFadden completing a 3-point play to start the period.
Hoytal answered with a 3-point play of his own, before the Indians found two consecutive baskets to cut the lead to 14.
Washburn Rural closed the game with an 18-3 run to secure the win, with much of the scoring coming off the bench.
Freshman Brooks Ballard hit a pair of 3-pointers, with the first coming off an assist from older brother Kaden with 3:49 to play in the contest.
Junior Simon Rowley scored 14 points Tuesday as Washburn Rural improved to 11-4 with a 74-45 win over Manhattan. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
Senior Amare Jones scored 14 points in Washburn Rural's 74-45 Centennial League win over Manhattan. [Photo by Doug Walker/Special to TSN]
Hoytal led the Junior Blues with 18 points on 6-8 shooting while adding five rebounds. Rowley and Jones added 14 points each.
Washburn Rural shot just over 56 percent from the field on the evening while forcing 20 Manhattan turnovers.
Spiegel led the Indians with 9 points and five rebounds. Sawyer Newton also contributed 9 points, while Knopp and Doering each added 8 points for the visitors.
Washburn Rural coach Alex Hutchins was pleased with the way his team defended in the early stages of the game, but would like to see his squad put together a full game of defensive intensity.
“I thought we did a pretty good job of being disruptive and forcing turnovers most of the game, minus the first five to six minutes of the third quarter,” Hutchins said. “I think we are at our best when we’re forcing turnovers and we’re making people uncomfortable. We’ve got to find ways to eliminate the lulls and do that for 32 straight minutes.”
With postseason play approaching, the Junior Blues are looking toward matchups with several strong teams in Class 6A.
Hoytal echoed his coach’s thoughts when preparing for a postseason run.
“We need to be a lot more aggressive on defense,” Hoytal said. “We’re not the tallest team. (We need to) pressure the ball and be disruptive. Be pests on defense, so the other team can’t be comfortable on offense.”
Washburn Rural will play four of its final five games on the road, traveling to Junction City on Friday.
WASHBURN RURAL BOYS 74, MANHATTAN 45
Manhattan 6 11 18 10 -- 45
Washburn Rural 18 18 17 21 - 74
Manhattan (5-10, 2-3) -- Carpenter 0-2 0-0 0, Newton, S. 3-5 3-3 9, Doering 4-6 0-0 8, Newton, A. 0-0 1-2 1, McFadden 3-9 1-1 7, Witt 0-2 1-2 1, Knopp 3-6 2-2 8, Goodpasture 0-0 0-0 0, Washington 1-4 0-0 2, Spiegel 3-5 3-4 9. Totals 17-39 11-14 45.
Washburn Rural (11-4, 5-0) -- Jones 5-9 3-5 14, Leonard 1-3 0-0 2, K. Ballard 4-7 1-1 10, Wright 0-0 1-2 1, Rowley 6-10 2-4 14, Hoytal 6-8 5-7 18, Nimz 0-0 0-0 0, Schwinn 1-1 0-0 2, B. Ballard 2-3 0-0 6, O’Connor 1-2 2-2 4, Chooncharoen 1-5 0-0 3, Schmidt 0-0 0-0 0. Totals 27-48 14-21 74.
3-point goals -- Washburn Rural 6 (B. Ballard 2, Jones, K. Ballard Hoytal, Chooncharoen). Total fouls -- Manhattan 15, Washburn Rural 12. Fouled out - none. Technical fouls - none.
